To think my friend is being scammed?

[chesarasara]

She’s been trying to get me to join her work from home business for a while and after looking into it for a bit I’ve politely but firmly said no. But she won’t let it drop asking why I won’t join her and now I’ve bluntly told her that I think the whole thing is a pyramid scheme style scam and she’s throwing her money away.

We’ve been good friends for years but she has changed so much since she joined this MLM business 6 months ago. Constantly posting inspirational memes on FB and boasting about how much money she’s making. But I know she’s lying as my DH and her DH are also friends and he’s confided how much debt they are in. I’m both so worried for her and worried that our friendship won’t survive if I don’t fork out the £200 for the business in a box and join her.

[TaliZorahVasNormandy]

This stuff is just a way of fucking up friendships because if people fall for it, they'll hate you because you sold them nothing but shit and debt.

[IonaNE]

I also have a colleague who got into it, always telling stories in the office of how so-and-so left a solicitor job because they earn more from Forever Living, etc. .. but colleague has gone strangely quiet about it now. I think as a rule these things are only profitable before you start hearing about them, i.e. for the top 30-50 people or so. By the time you get the ads and the talks and the free samples it's too late to jump on the bandwagon.

[Ta1kinPeece]

Russell
en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Forever_Living_Products&redirect=no
and
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-level_marketing

[Ta1kinPeece]

The question I always ask is ....
How much of your net income comes from selling products to people outside your network?
I rarely get a response.

Boots HQ do not make their money selling to Boots staff.
They make money by selling to outside customers.

[TiredButFineODFOJ]

Oh OP you've really no experience of this at all, have you?
An acquaintance of mine was doing another one of these a few years ago. If it's any comfort, eventually the cult like grip will loosen and she will get back to being "normal" but it takes a long while.
These things suck you in bit by bit, given that they are in debt she's probably clinging to this shite business as an answer to her problems, and these culty twats budinesses know just how to suck you in.

[Russellgroupserf]

Thanks Ta1kin I didn't want to accidentally click on a link of the company in case I got lots of pop ups.

[FreakinScaryCaaw]

My cousin wanted me to get into this but not Forever Living. Some beauty products? I could tell it was pyramid selling. Luckily I work so just said I said I sreally don't have time.

She's in another country so I was surprised at being asked?

I notice she's gone a bit quiet about it.

They used to do this in the 80s with Amway. Spoiled many a freindship.

[FreakinScaryCaaw]

Friendship*

[GarlicCake]

But if it is such a scam why does she not see that?

It's like a cult. Absolutely literally, it's like a cult. One of the links on that long thread took the Forever Living pitch apart and demonstrated how it precisely follows all of the same techniques used by cults.

Fortunately (ish) it doesn't wield quite as much control over members' personal lives as the Moonies Unification Church, Mormons or Scientology. So there's a far better chance of your friend getting out when she's facing either bankruptcy or complete desertion by all her friends.

When she does, love-bomb her. She'll need it!

[KitKat1985]

Forever Living is just awful. Run. Fast. DO NOT be guilt tripped into buying any of this crap or agreeing to be a distributor.

[mrsjskelton]

I am a Forever Living person and can assure you it's in no way a scam but lots of people do completely go head over heels with it and annoy their friends very quickly!!
I paid my £200 for my first box of products, loved them to bits and did a bit of selling/launch parties and made my money back 3 or 4 times in the first month or so. It's a very easy thing to do as a single mum or if you fancy a change and if you get bored - stop! The one thing I never did was harass my friends though, it can be very awkward otherwise!

[2015nearlyover]

It's a load of crap.

[Ta1kinPeece]

Mrsskelton
What proportion of your net income comes from selling products to end users?

[HortonWho]

That's fantastic MrsJskelton - you are in perfect position to clear up the question asked:

How much of your monthly net income came from selling products to people outside your network?

[HortonWho]

Ha, talkin beat me to it

[longtimelurking]

How can anyone think the claims of earning £10k a month for 8 hours a week work and £200 can be in any way plausible.

I'm surprised people fall for these things, they are clearly scams.... very slick cult like scams which prey on the vulnerable.

OP YANBU, all you can do is wait for your friend to see the light.

[Ta1kinPeece]

Horton
I've got that question ready to roll whenever ANY MLM seller pops up.
I'm yet to get a response from any of them

[GarlicCake]

I paid my £200 for my first box of products ... and made my money back 3 or 4 times in the first month or so.

Let's say you made it back 4 times (I can hardly believe you don't remember your first flush of sales.) Let's say a month or so means 6 weeks.

Great! You sold £800 worth for a £200 outlay - ignoring the cost of your parties, phone calls and so on which are business costs, so shouldn't be ignored. On this un-businesslike basis, you made £600 in six weeks. Less business costs. So that's under £100 a week.

I do hope things have picked up for you.

[IonaNE]

I do hope things have picked up for you.
This ^

[Flumplet]

I'm here with popcorn, as always

[chesarasara]

Well after reading all the links that have been posted I'm so going to sign up with Timelessvie! Love the way mumsnetters can turn a conversation round

[DartmoorDoughnut]

Garlic

[Ta1kinPeece]

Tee hee.

[MI6Agent]

place marking

[mysteryknickers]

I have this popping up on my FB too, a friend of a friend who seems to have hired business premises and posts about more people joining 'her amazing team'. She seems to also talk about being a life coach - I presume because she spends a lot of time persuading people that their lives will be changed if they join her cult team. It's all a bit car crash and I really want to tell her to stop but she's not going to listen to me